State Umno ‘on road to recovery’

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KUALA TERENGGANU: Umno vice-president Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein has expressed optimism that Barisan Nasional is on the right track in managing Terengganu despite an internal crisis in the state Umno.

Hishammuddin, who is Terengganu Umno chief, said the state Umno was on the road to recovery unlike previous times when some assemblymen went against Mentri Besar Datuk Ahmad Said.

“It is undeniable that there are one or two issues which the leadership should tackle but the overall political situation is now much better,” he said after attending a gotong-royong in Kampung Penarik here yesterday.

Asked about several Barisan assemblymen who were absent at a meeting with Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin at Kuala Berang on Thursday, Hishammuddin explained that the Deputy Prime Minister had three events in the state.

“There were other programmes that were attended by the assemblymen,” he added.

However, Terengganu Barisan Nasional Backbenchers Club chairman Datuk Rosol Wahid said the dissatisfaction over how state Umno leaders were managing the crisis had prompted the majority of the assemblymen to stay away from the Kuala Berang event.

“We did not orchestrate the boycott as claimed by certain quarters but decided to stay away to convey our discontentment,” he said.

He warned that the state’s political situation could worsen if there was no immediate intervention from an Umno supremo.

“I can safely say that there will be en bloc resignations,” he said.

However, this did not mean that they intended to cross over to the opposition.

“We can bury the hatchet if Tan Sri (Muhyiddin) can find a solution.”

Asked why they were not counting on Hishammuddin to resolve the crisis, Rosol said: “We are unhappy about how he is handling it. He should listen to all parties, not only to those who hold office in the state Umno line-up.”

On whether PKR had enticed the assemblymen to cross over, Rosol claimed that he had received a call from an aide of PKR adviser Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on the day Muhyiddin was in Kuala Berang.

“I told him I had no intention of defecting from Umno.”